Chemical Sampling Information
	Phenol
Quick Links General Description Exposure Limits Health Factors Monitoring Search    [use word(s)/phrase] Table of Contents By Name A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z By CAS Number General Description Synonyms: Carbolic acid; Hydroxybenzene; Monohydroxybenzene; Phenyl alcohol; Phenyl hydroxide OSHA IMIS Code Number: 2040 Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) Registry Number: 108-95-2 NIOSH, Registry of Toxic Effects (RTECS) Identification Number: SJ3325000 Department of Transportation Regulation Number (49 CFR 172.101) and Guide: 1671 153 [27 KB, PDF] (solid); 2312 153 [27 KB, PDF] (molten); 2821 153 [27 KB, PDF] (solution) NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards, Phenol: chemical description, physical properties, potentially hazardous incompatibilities, and more Exposure Limits OSHA Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) for General Industry: 29 CFR 1910.1000 Z-1 Table -- 5 ppm, 19 mg/m3 TWA; Skin OSHA Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) for Construction Industry: 29 CFR 1926.55 Appendix A -- 5 ppm, 19 mg/m3 TWA; Skin OSHA Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) for Maritime: 29 CFR 1915.1000 Table Z-Shipyards -- 5 ppm, 19 mg/m3 TWA; Skin American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) Threshold Limit Value (TLV): 5 ppm, 19 mg/m3 TWA; Skin; Appendix A4 - Not Classifiable as a Human Carcinogen; BEI National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Recommended Exposure Limit (REL): 5 ppm, 19 mg/m3 TWA Skin; 15.6 ppm, 60 mg/m3 Ceiling (15 Minutes); Skin Health Factors International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) carcinogenic classification: Group 3, not classifiable as to its carcinogenicity to humans. [381 KB, PDF] Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) carcinogenic classification: Group D, not classifiable as to human carcinogenicity. NIOSH Immediately Dangerous To Life or Health Concentration (IDLH): 250 ppm Potential symptoms: Eye, nose, throat irritation; anorexia, nausea, vomiting, weight loss, lassitude (weakness, exhaustion), headache, dizziness, muscle ache, pain; cardiac arrhythmia; labored breathing, shortness of breath, pulmonary edema, cyanosis; liver, kidney damage; skin burns, dermatitis; ochronosis; tremor, convulsions, twitching; metabolic acidosis; SKIN ABS.: Numbness, collapse, coma; INGES. ACUTE: Abdominal pain, sore throat, diarrhea; smoky, greenish-dark urine; shock or collapse. Health Effects: Irritation – Eye, nose, throat, skin---Marked (HE14); Acute and chronic systemic toxicity (HE4) Affected organs: Eyes, skin, respiratory system, CNS, liver, kidneys. Notes: Vapor/air mixtures of phenol may be explosive at temperatures above 79°C. EPA’s reference dose for chronic oral exposure (daily oral exposure likely to be without an appreciable risk of deleterious effects during a lifetime) for phenol is 0.6 mg/kg/day, and its provisional reference concentration is 0.006 mg/m3. Phenol is considered to be generally recognized as safe when used as a flavoring agent (Flavor and Extract Manufacturers Association number 3223; Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives number 690). Phenol and its sulfate and glucuronide conjugates are normal constituents of urine. A mean total concentration of 7 mg/liter was reported in one skin-absorption study in 12 volunteers before skin exposure to phenol, and a mean of 11.7 mg/liter was reported for 26 males (all smokers) acting a controls for 89 employees occupationally exposed to phenol, who had a mean level of 87.3 mg/liter (corrected for specific gravity) after 4 hours at work. A number of fatalities have been reported after dermal exposure alone, oral exposure alone, and one after an exposure by both routes. Date Last Revised: 03/08/2007 Literature Basis: NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards: Phenol. International Chemical Safety Cards (WHO/IPCS/ILO): Phenol. EPA Air Toxics Website: Phenol. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Technology Transfer Network. Baranowska-Dutkiewicz, B.: Skin absorption of phenol from aqueous solutions in men. Int. Arch. Occup. Environ. Health 49: 99-104, 1981. Bentur, Y., et al.: Prolonged elimination half-life of phenol after dermal exposure. J. Toxicol. Clin. Toxicol. 36(7): 707-711, 1998. Bieniek, G.: Concentrations of phenol, o-cresol, and 2,5-xylenol in the urine of workers employed in the distillation of the phenolic fraction of tar. Occup. Environ. Med. 51(5): 354-356, 1994. Botta, S.A., Straith, R.E. and Goodwin, H.H.: Cardiac arrhythmias in phenol face peeling: a suggested protocol for prevention. Aesthetic Plast. Surg. 12(2): 115-117, 1988. [No authors listed]: Phenol. IARC Monogr. Eval. Carcinog. Risks Hum. 71(Pt. 2): 749-768, 1999. [381 KB, PDF] Pohanish, R.P. (editor): Phenol. In, Sittig’s Handbook of Toxic and Hazardous Chemicals and Carcinogens, Fourth Ed., Vol. 2. Norwich, NY: Noyes Publications, William Andrew Publishing, 2002, pp. 1820-1823. Spiller, H.A., Quadrani-Kushner, D.A. and Cleveland, P.: A five year evaluation of acute exposures to phenol disinfectant (26%). Clin. Toxicol. 31(2): 307-313, 1993. Tanaka, T., Kasai, K., Kita, T. and Tanaka, N.: Distribution of phenol in a fatal poisoning case determined by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. J. Forensic Sci. 43(5): 1086-1088, 1998. Monitoring Methods used by OSHA Laboratory Sampling/Analytical Method: sampling media: XAD-7 Tube (100/50 mg sections, 15/50 mesh) analytical solvent: Methanol maximum volume: 24 Liters   maximum flow rate: 0.1 L/min current analytical method: High Performance Liquid Chromatography; HPLC/UV alternate analytical method: Gas Chromatography; GC/FID method reference: OSHA Analytical Method (OSHA 32) method classification: Fully Validated Bulk method: Limit the amount of bulk submitted to one gram or one mL. All Trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Accessibility Assistance: Contact the OSHA Directorate of Science, Technology and Medicine at 202-693-2300 for assistance accessing PDF materials.